Politics

The head of the most senior ethics watchdog has called for some form of limit on MPs’ second jobs, telling Sky News it is “hard to argue” some politicians are putting parliament first. MPs should be given an “indicative” ceiling on how much time to spend on their extra-parliamentary roles, according to an interview with

Michael Gove and Rishi Sunak have pledged to see off Conservative rebellions over housebuilding as they lay out their plans to increase homes in the UK. Mr Gove, the housing secretary, was delivering a speech on his plans to increase the number of homes being built in the UK, with the government having previously missed

Developers have accused the government of not doing enough to tackle falling levels of house building, as Michael Gove prepares to unveil plans that he says will boost construction – without spoiling the countryside. In a speech expected on Monday, the levelling up and housing secretary will set out measures aimed at “unblocking the planning

Sadiq Khan is still committed to expanding the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) but is happy to look at new ideas for ways to mitigate the financial impact on Londoners, Sky News understands. The London mayor is understood to be willing to consider measures as long as they do not reduce the policy’s effectiveness at

Labour’s big beasts descended on Nottingham on Saturday for the party’s National Policy Forum (NPF). Alongside the unions and other party representatives, they will hash out what will become the main thrust of their manifesto. The problem is they are doing it in the wake of a by-election that was lost on the back of

Labour’s failure to take Boris Johnson’s former seat is a reminder that “policy matters”, Sir Keir Starmer has said – after the expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) by London mayor Sadiq Khan was blamed for the narrow loss. The opposition leader told activists that the Conservatives hanging on to Uxbridge and South

All three leading political parties are turning their attention to next year’s general election after a mixed bag of results from Thursday’s ballot box contests. The Conservatives managed to hold former prime minister Boris Johnson’s seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip overnight, with Rishi Sunak saying the victory showed the next national vote was “not

The Conservatives have suffered two by-election defeats in what had been seen as safe seats. Labour won in the constituency of Selby and Ainsty, while the Liberal Democrats triumphed in Somerton and Frome. The opposition parties both overturned Tory majorities of about 20,000 – as polling experts said the results meant “deep electoral trouble” for

After the three by-elections – in Uxbridge and South Ruislip, Selby and Ainsty, and Somerton and Frome – there will be three new MPs taking their seats in parliament. The elections took place following the resignations of three Conservatives – Boris Johnson, Nigel Adams and David Warburton. The Conservatives saw significant defeats in Selby to

The chief executive of the banking group that owns Coutts has apologised to Nigel Farage after his account was closed. The former UKIP and Brexit Party leader claimed the elite bank took the action because his views did not align with the firm’s “values”. But reports in the BBC and Financial Times suggested it was

The government has delayed publishing its long-awaited transgender guidance for schools after its own legal advisors concluded some of the suggested elements would be unlawful, Sky News understands. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had promised to bring out the advice during the summer term, which comes to an end this week for most state schools. But

Polls will open today at 7am for three by-elections across the country, as voters decide who they want to represent them in parliament. The seats of Uxbridge and South Ruislip in west London, Selby and Ainsty in North Yorkshire, and Somerton and Frome in Somerset, will all be up for grabs, with polls closing at

Selby in Yorkshire, Somerton in the south west and Uxbridge in the London suburbs: from rural to town, from north to south – the three by-elections up this Thursday will tell a bigger story of the state of our politics, with records up for grabs. In these three seats – and the prospect of at

Two giant cruise ships set to house 1,000 asylum seekers were unable to find anywhere to dock and have been returned to their owners, a senior source has told Sky News. In June, Rishi Sunak announced the government acquired two more vessels, alongside the Bibby Stockholm barge – which arrived in Dorset today – as

Controversial plans to tackle the small boats crisis are poised to become law after the government crushed a series of renewed challenges by peers at Westminster. The Tory front bench saw off five further changes being sought by the upper chamber to the Illegal Migration Bill, including modern slavery protections and child detention limits. At

A barge which will house 500 asylum seekers is on the move, with the first residents expected to board later this month. The barge – named the Bibby Stockholm – departed from Falmouth, Cornwall, to head to Portland Port in Dorset on Monday morning as Rishi Sunak and Home Secretary Suella Braverman faced fresh criticism

Boris Johnson has been criticised for the swelling size of the House of Lords and an imbalance in the political make-up of the upper chamber. A report from the Lord Speaker’s committee on the size of the house highlighted Mr Johnson as showing “no interest” in trying to reduce the number of peers. This follows

Union boss Mick Lynch has said Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has to show he is “on the side of the people” before the next general election. The general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union criticised Sir Keir and the Labour Party when asked about how long strikes on the railway could

Tony Blair has said that the NHS is “not serving its purpose” in an exclusive interview with Sky News. Speaking to Sophy Ridge on Sunday, the former PM didn’t mince his words when addressing the current state of the UK’s health service. Asked if he thought the NHS was providing a good standard of service,

Defence minister Ben Wallace says he will stand down at the next election. Mr Wallace, the longest-serving Conservative defence secretary, said in an interview with The Times: “I’m not standing next time.” He added that he will not be resigning “prematurely” and forcing a by-election. Mr Wallace also confirmed he would leave the cabinet at